Studies have identified mobile phones and related devices as sources of metal sensitisation and potential causes of allergic contact dermatitis (ACD), many phones on the market release levels of metals, such as nickel and chromium, which are sufficient to induce ACD, Reports, PTI.

A team of researchers led by Jacob Thyssen, from the Copenhagen University Hospital Gentofte, Denmark, and Loma Linda University School of Medicine and University of Arizona College of Medicine in US, reviewed the current literature on mobile phone dermatitis in both children and adults.

The researchers found that nickel sensitisation is common in children and it can lead to ACD prevalence levels of up to 33 percent.

The metals used in manufacturing cell phones such as nickel and chromium could lead to skin allergies in children as well. 

                                                        

"With the rising use of cell phones and other mobile devices, pediatricians can expect to see additional cases of ACD," said Mary Cataletto, a professor of clinical pediatrics at State University of New York at Stony Brook.

The research was published in the journal Paediatric Allergy, Immunology, and Pulmonology.